How to Get Rid of a Hickey

Updated on March 15, 2012

Cover Up or Get Rid of HIckeys Fast

If you are looking for answers on how to get rid of a hickey you clearly have been having a good time! Hickeys are typically the result of someone sucking and kissing your neck for a long period of time. While this is a pleasurable experience, it unfortunately has its negative repercussions when you finish. You more than likely have a small to midsized red mark or bruise on your neck. It’s hard to tell people that it’s not a hickey and you know that no one is going to believe you. Fortunately for you, we have the solution to getting rid of that ugly hickey!

How Are Hickeys Caused?

When someone sucks on your skin for a long period of time blood vessels burst and blood is literally stuck right underneath the surface of your skin. That’s why you see the redness and bruising. Sometimes people will even see the hickey start to “migrate” because the blood is draining underneath your skin to different areas. Hickeys aren’t going to hurt you, but they may take a while to heal. Please see our best methods for getting rid of hickeys below.

How to Get Rid of Hickeys - Easy Methods

Treat your hickey just like you would if you bumped your neck on something or if someone through a baseball at you. A hickey is a wound even though it came from a pleasurable experience.

Use Ice. If you just got the hickey and you’re freaking out about it, go and grab some ice. Keep the area cold to minimize swelling. The more it swells, the worse it’s going to show. Put some ice in a plastic bag and hold it on your neck for a few hours. This will minimize the damage.

Cold Spoon. Put a tablespoon in your freezer for about twenty minutes. The metal of the spoon with get incredibly cold. Take the spoon out of the freezer and place it directly on your hickey. This method works great right after the hickey has occurred and the next morning. It will work for up to 48 hours after the hickey took place. The earlier you act, the better results you will see. This will also work if you have dark circles under your eyes. It just relieves swelling and allows blood to drain.

Gentle Massage. This is a somewhat painful method and it must be done soon after receiving the hickey. Gentle rub the area that is affected by the hickey. Massaging the hickey will help the blood drain back into your muscles in your neck rather than just sitting directly underneath the skin.

Chapstick Cap. Find a chapstick or lipstick cap and apply the end of it directly onto your hickey and twist repeatedly. This will drive the blood back into the muscles of your neck. A pencil eraser works great too! This method hurts, but it’s the most effective. You can use any object that has an end similar to chapstick or lipstick. Any object that you can twist on your hickey easily will work best.

The Heat Method. Only use this method if the hickey occurred more than 48 hours ago. Grab a washcloth and run it under very hot water. Make it as hot as you can without burning yourself and apply it to the area affected by the hickey. Hold it there for about 2 minutes or until the washcloth loses its heat. This will help drain the blood out of the area.

Unfortunately, these are the only measures that we know of on how to get rid of the hickey. Timing is everything and you need to act quickly. However, there are several excellent methods you can consider to cover up the hickey. Whether you’re a guy or a girl, these methods will work!

How to Cover Up Hickeys – Easy Methods

If you can’t figure out how to get rid of a hickey, perhaps you can cover it up! If you’ve got that ugly red area on your neck and need to cover it up please consider the following methods. These methods will work great for guys and girls!

Curling Iron. Many people go with “curling iron” excuse to explain why they have a red mark on their neck that looks like a hickey. You can try telling people that’s what happened or you can gently burn your skin and make it look more realistic. I do not recommend this method, but if you’ve got a lot to lose by showing the hickey you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do! It is probably the easiest way to get away with this excuse.

Cover Up. Cover up is a girl’s best friend! In this case, it can be a man’s best friend too. Simply find a cover up that matches your skin tone and apply enough until you can’t see the hickey anymore. If you’re a guy, no one is going to suspect you’re wearing cover up on your neck. Ask one of your girlfriends to help you out! Make sure you don’t wear a bright white shirt or the cover up might stain it and out you.

Wear Turtlenecks. Since it’s currently 2012, I’m sure most of you don’t love this idea. However, some people can still get away with rocking turtlenecks! Turtlenecks work great for covering up hickeys and they are surprisingly comfortable. If it’s really warm out this method probably won’t help you unless you want to roast!

Hickeys have been known to get teenagers in trouble with their parents. They also can get you in trouble at work. People just don’t like seeing them. Weather you choose to cover them up or attempt to get rid of them using one of these natural remedies, I wish you the best of luck! If one of these methods have worked for you or you have figured out your own method of how to get rid of a hickey, please share in the comment section below. There are plenty of people in the same position as you!